An announcement on behalf of Invicta Dynamos Owners, Sarah & Kevin Parrish, and Head Coach, Karl Lennon.
Following the horrific circumstances at the weekend and the heartbreaking passing of Adam Johnson of The Nottingham Panthers we have worked quickly and closely as a Management Team to ensure we have the correct and appropriate player safety measures in place to do all we can to absolutely ensure this situation does not ever happen again.
Players and management met tonight to check in with our players and reassure them of our support, both now and in the future. The events of the weekend have far reaching consequences and we wanted the players to know we stand with them and we will support them.
As a club we acted swiftly and secured neck guards for every player on the roster yesterday, to be delivered tomorrow in time for training. The club has decided these will be mandatory for all training sessions and games with immediate effect. We wholeheartedly welcome the announcement of mandatory neck guards from 1st Jan that the EIHA have implemented today and we understand the small delay due to supply issues.
We are working closely with our Team Sports Therapist, Joe Rodgers, who is providing us with several trauma kits as well as training on how to use those kits and additional First Aid Training for any player who would like to access that.
We will be reviewing our player safety processes, equipment checks, and game day procedures to ensure we are as equipped as we can be to deal with any potential medical emergencies in the future.
Player safety is, and always will be, a priority for us a club. Adam Johnson, his family and friends, his team mates, the entire Panthers organisation, all who witnessed the devastating scenes on Saturday and the wider hockey community remain in our thoughts.
This is his legacy. Rest in Peace #47, Adam Johnson.